Name/Title
"Caricature of Frederick V. Coville"Description
Caricature of a man dressed in overalls and a hat holding a glass cube with two blueberries inside and surrounded by large blueberries.Artwork Details
Subject Person
Frederick V. CovilleSeries
Caricatures of past Arts Club presidents by Clifford Kennedy Berryman.Context
Frederick V. Coville (1867-1937)
Frederick V. Coville became sixth president of the Arts Club in 1927. Originally from New York, he studied there at Oxford Academy, and then at Cornell University. He moved to DC in 1888, where he spent the rest of his life. A leading botanist with the US Department of Agriculture, he took part in the 1890 Death Valley Expedition, served as curator for the National Herbarium, and was chairman of the research committee of the National Geographic Society. He has published numerous important works on botany. Of particular note to us is his 1910 work Experiments in Blueberry Culture, as he is depicted in his caricature surrounded by a “big blueberry family.” You will also notice, in the background, Berryman’s own signature Teddy Bear fleeing the scene, a gigantic blueberry in its clutches. Source: Max Gilder, intern for the Arts Club during the spring semester of 2021 while a student at the University of Maryland.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Clifford Kennedy BerrymanRole
ArtistInscription/Signature/Marks
Type
LabelLocation
lower left cornerTranscription
Frederick V. Coville 1927-1929(?)Type
SignatureLocation
lower right cornerTranscription
C K BerrymanType
InscriptionLocation
Speech bubble, upper left cornerTranscription
"I started the big blueberry family with these two berries and let nature take its course!"Update Date
August 21, 2025